July 25/10 12:43 pm - Cascade Classic: Women Stage 4

Joanne Kiesanowski of Team TIBCO/To the Top took full advantage of the team’s final-lap leadout to win the Stage 4 criterium of the Cascade Classic in downtown Bend this evening.

“The team was so strong today,” she said. “Our plan was to keep things together and bring it down to a bunch sprint. We shut down everything that went. Colavita tried to get a few breaks going be we covered everything.”

After helping Megan Guarnier in the three intermediate sprints in the hunt for the green sprinter’s jersey, the final laps saw Team TIBCO take over the front of the race and never relinquish it.

“The last couple laps we were really dominant on the front,” Kiesanowski said.

On the bell lap, the team still had five riders lined up on the front, with Amada Miller leading them through the start/finish. She gave way to Meredith Miller on the back straight.

“Meredith did an amazing job on the back straight,” Kiesanowski said. So good, in fact that coming through the final corner, she was still planted on the front, finally giving way to Emma Mackie coming out of the last corner. After only a hundred meters or so, Brooke Miller came around Mackie and opened up the sprint. Kiesanowski hit out inside 200 meters to go.

“I saw Joelle (Numainville, Webcor) coming up the right side,” she said. “I really had to dig deep but I held on.”

Brooke Miller kept going to take 4th, while Mackie, seeing a gap had opened behind her, pushed on and held on for 6th on the stage.

Joanne Kiesanowski holds on to take the win in the Cascade Classic Criterium. (Photo: Jonathan Devich, Epic Images)

The Classic has proven to be a challenge for the team this week, but Kiesanowski noted, “if you can come away with a stage win, then it’s a successful tour. And it’s great to win the crit because it’s right in downtown in front of lots of people so it’s really good exposure.”

The Classic concludes Sunday with the always-tough Aubrey Butte Circuit Race, which also hosted the national road championships a month ago.